RP:Winter Women
Summary: Emilia and Alvina find each other in the Winter Berry Garden. Emilia confesses some people think she isn't well, and that she thinks she might be a monster. Alvina soothes these concerns by telling Emilia she is a loving person and wonderful mother. They both walk away feeling a little better than before.
Winter Berry Garden
Alvina had been in Vailkrin too long. She'd forgotten how much she liked the cold, liked the silence of Frostmaw’s secluded areas. She's dressed in navy, high neck dress and cloak. White boots coated in snow. Her hood is down, so she sits on the stone bench with flecks of snow caught in her crimson hair. Her gold arm is covered by a navy glove, but her fleshed right arm is bare. She sighs heavily, expelling a small white cloud from her warm lips.
Emilia walked with bare feet gliding over the snow dusting the ground of the garden. The icy woman and the element a strange combination when together such that she left no print in her wake. The Genasi sported nothing more than a flowing spring gown that danced around her toothpick frame as she walked along the garden path toward Alvina without really seeing the red headed woman cloaked in navy. Her eyes were glued to a book in her hands. It was a wonder she had yet to walk into anyone or anything. Just as she would have walked into the bench with the lady Alvina she pivoted to side step the collision as if by some unseen force, "Sorry about that." she mumbled without looking to see whom she nearly ran into.
Alvina didn’t notice Emilia until it was almost too late, when her frame glided into her peripheral vision and pivots away. The bard’s fleshed hand rushes to cover her racing heart atop her cloak before she gives the woman a full glance and recognizes the woman responsible for bringing her children into this world. “Emilia,” The bard sighs with warm affection. Her legs straighten, to pull Alvina upright instead of remaining seated on the bench. “It’s been quite a while, how are you?”
Emilia only at the sound of her name snapped her gaze away from the pages of the small book she was reading while walking carelessly. The bright gaze of the Genasi landed on the red headed woman with a soft smile, “Alvina.” Sliding the ribbon into the center of the book between her current pages the woman politely shut the little thing and tucked it into her dress pocket, giving full attention now to the other woman. “I am fine, however others tell me I am not,” a small shrug sending white curls into her face, “Yourself? The little ladies?”
Alvina frowns at the woman’s reply, but she’ll break the ice by offering a reply to her question first. “They are marvelous; starting to say things. I’m worried for the day their father’s genes caught up with them but for now...they are muttering all kinds of nonsense words. Starting to be so mobile too…” Alvina sighs, forgetting for a moment her concerns in the wake of her children. They were such a warm spot, blotting out all personal affairs. Alvina’s emerald eyes focus with concern on Emilia, letting her smile wilt at a natural place before she speaks. “What do you mean, others tell you that you aren’t?” A moment, while she stares at the outline of the book in Emilia’s pocket. What had she been reading?
Emilia shrugged once more, “I suppose I cannot answer for others as to their reasoning to why they think I am not well. Perhaps running a life of adventure without care or fear of dying? Learning to fly with ice crafted wings? Surgery to fix a broken bone by coating it in metal? Walking and reading? Disappearing for days at end? Any number of proper answers depends on the who to take the answer from.” There was a gentle smile on those frosted blue lips as the woman ran her black ice fingers through her white curls, tucking them behind her ears before changing the subject. Her voice ever soft, “I am sure that when their dad’s gene catch up to them it will all work out in the end. Always does. Plus they have a wonderful mother raising them.”
Alvina didn’t know Emilia well enough to say that any of these activities meant she wasn’t well. Could she fly on ice wings? That sounded more cool than ‘not well’. Are her bones coated in metal? And if they were, who was Alvina to talk? She had a whole metal arm to account for as well. Running a life of adventure? Alvina had done the same thing once too, it was dangerous but many people lived fine lives that way. Walking and reading seemed normal too, Alvina herself was guilty of the same thing so by all accounts the bard has to disagree that anything is wrong with the Gensai. She mirrors Emilia’s smile and watches the other woman tuck away her curls. “You are too kind,” She says first to the compliment about being a wonderful mother. “I’m still new at this, I’m sure I could use some pointers from an expert such as yourself.” The woman chuckles, good naturedly. “And all of those things sound fairly normal.” She agreed. “How do -you- feel?”
Emilia lost that cute smile on those frozen lips the moment that Alvina complimented her on her being an expert of motherhood. It was not just the smile that fell from her face, but the look of life faded away into a dead look with a blank expression. Shaking her head the curls fell from behind her ears into her saddened face, "I am no expert, Alvina. My former mate took my offspring many many months...a year? No word at all. You are looking at nothing more than the co-leader of the Healer's Guild and crazy ice-woman of some stories." This would be that moment Alvina might see where the something wrong with her came into play.
Alvina squints at Emilia then. Her children were gone? That was an impossible thing to do, take someone’s children away like that. Alvina wants to mount a charge for Emilia’s honor, go find a way to steal the children back but all she can do is stare. “W-why…” What a horrible mate to do such a thing? If Hudson ran off with Luna and Harper...she’d end him in a heartbeat, if she could ever find him. When Em seems to dismiss her own motherhood, Alvina waves her hands. “No no, you are still their mother. No matter where they are.” The bard steps closer, wishing she could take Emilia in her arms and hold her until the pain vanished but...she couldn’t. Alvina didn’t know if the pain of losing your children ever went away and couldn’t fully imagine what she was going through.
Emilia offered frowned, "I am trouble. Or trouble follows me around. Kidnappings? Lost count the number. Drow after me? Put in Larket's jail? That was only more recent, but you may get the gist of it. I am not very safe for anyone, let alone tiny ones to be around. I suppose he left the realm with them to keep them safe. Anywhere not near me is safer than with me. Then again, they are half dragon half human and I am all ice. Not once have I accidentally frozen them or given them a brush of frostbite." An almost permanent frown settle onto her lips, "It really isn't the easiest thing in the world to be, ya know. A walking talking ice monster. Doesn't allow for much physical contact with anyone anymore nor do people like to be around something that releases waves of bone chilling cold. I suppose it is true that I belong in the wilds here away from the masses. Less of a danger that way.”
The more Emilia talked about what a danger she was, the deeper Alvina’s frown advanced. When she finished, the crimson haired bard looked positively angry at the words she was speaking about herself. Alvina didn’t know that Hudson had tried to kiss her, maybe he succeeded once. Or twice. If she did, she’d offer this up as knowledge to the contrary. “Trouble just exists.” Alvina waved her arms wildly, gesturing to the sky. “It doesn’t follow one person more than another, it just lives in the people and places we occupy. Set to spring at the right or wrong time….and Trouble often shows up in waves.” A way for her to say ‘these things happen to everyone’. Maybe not, everyone has ice magic but everyone had troubles. “You aren’t a monster. Monsters thoughtlessly destroy. You bring life into this world, through your own good heart, I’ve seen that and know it’s the truth.”
Emilia could flash a smile for a just a moment with the words of the other woman, “I have taken out more lives in this world than I have entered into it, but everyone has a dark past, no? I can agree that my goal isn’t to kill people, but to heal and help the world grow. I suppose, that is something not monster-like.” It was hard to see herself beyond the ice creature that she was, but Alvina just managed for a moment to help the frozen lady see past her own cold shell. Retucking pesky curls behind her ears, pointless really the sprung out moments later, the Genasi pointed to the other, “Why are you sitting out here all alone in the Garden?”
Alvina had been prepared to battle another round of self criticism but is pleasantly surprised that Emilia takes her words to heart. The Engineer lets her shoulders slack, taking a moment to enjoy her smile before her inquiry is made. “Oh, I come here to think a lot, when I’m not working. It helps clear my head of problems or situations I can’t solve. When I’m here, I always find what I need somehow….if it’s a person I need to speak with or a thought strung together because of random other thoughts it’s just...relaxing to be here. My own little ice island in the world.” She laughed, offering Emilia a smile. “What are you reading?”
Emilia reached into her pocket to pull out the book that she had been reading, a field guild to birds with detailed notes on different ones. Each page provided also a noted wing span and flight details about them. Seems flying was on the mind of the Genasi and birds was her study material to teach herself how to be airborn. "Birds..." she said while giving the other the book to flip through as she pleased. A few notes of the icy woman's writing on some pages. "I hope I did not interrupt your thinking or person waiting, whichever it was you were seeking this wonderful wintery day.”
Alvina takes the book and thumbs through it’s pages, stopping to read a few notes with a be smile. She had quite a few books like this at home, with homemade notes of her own in a darker ink. “Not at all. It’s exactly the reason I come here.” She reassures Emilia with a smile before starting towards the exit. “I’m glad I ran into you, I hope we run into each other again very soon, Emilia.” The bard smiles, saying the woman’s name with hope. “I have to finish a project but...I hope we can meet up again soon?” She hands the book back to the Gensai with that same steady smile on her lips.
Emilia accepted the book back in that strange hand of hers that sparkled in the light, but was otherwise glossy and pitch black. Tucking it back into her pocket Em nodded, "Of course, I tend to be somewhere about Frostmaw, mostly my greenhouse North of the mines. You are always welcome to visit. Bring the tiny ones if you want, none of the plants are harmful." There was a smile before she waved good-bye to the red haired woman.